DFES provides free classroom activities and lesson plans for Pre-Primary to Year 2 teachers and their students. All excursions, incursions, lesson plans and classroom activities are linked to the Western Australian Curriculum and Reporting Outline.

Students learn about DFES’ emergency helpers and how they can keep themselves safe in a fire, flood or storm emergency. Fun, interactive group activities help reinforce basic fire, flood and storm safety messages and the importance of triple zero (000).

Students will dress as emergency helpers in the engine room, explore a modern day fire truck and there will be a group photo opportunity so bring a camera!

The excursion runs for 90 minutes and the following sessions are available for bookings on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only:

Morning: 10:15am to 11:45amAfternoon: 12:30pm to 2:00pm

The maximum number of students per booking is 1 class of 32 students. Due to staffing and the size of the venue we are unable to accept larger groups.

As our gallery spaces are quite small, we recommend no more than 8 adults (including teachers and teacher assistants) attend the excursion with your class.

Bushfire Patrol includes DFES’ bushfire resources for teachers and students who live in the southwest land division of Western Australia. Bushfire Patrol aims to raise students and their family’s awareness, perception of risk and shared responsibility around bushfire in the community.

Bushfire Patrol is an award winning education resource, winning the State Division in the 2014 Resilient Australia Awards in Western Australia and receiving a Highly Commended Award at the national 2014 Resilient Australia Awards in Canberra.

Bushfire Patrol was developed in partnership with the Department of Education (WA).

The teaching resources include 5 lesson plans. The online games are missioned based and can be used as an introduction to lessons 1, 2, 4 and 5.

Involving Parents – Take Home Tasks

In lessons 4 and 5, Bushfire Patrol includes activities that require students to take information home to discuss with their families. The effectiveness of Bushfire Patrol depends on this interaction and will help maximise student learning.

Please direct parents to the resources listed below to help prepare themselves further and involve their children in planning for bushfire:

There is currently no formal incursion or guidelines for the Volunteer Bushfire Brigades or Emergency Services to visit students in Pre-Primary to Year 2.

Bushfire Patrol asks you to invite the local volunteer bushfire brigade or emergency services unit to your school to discuss their bushfire experiences and what to do during a bushfire threat. Please understand that due to them being volunteers and their operational requirements they may not have the capacity to visit your students in school.

If your local volunteer bushfire brigade or emergency services unit can attend, please discuss what you would like them to talk about prior to their visit. You may want students to prepare the questions that they would like to ask firefighters to answer. If you can, let firefighters know these questions in advance. A visit could include:

North West Bushfire Patrol includes DFES’s bushfire resources for teachers and students who live in the North West land division of Western Australia. North West Bushfire Patrol aims to raise student awareness of bushfire risks and consequences; whilst developing a range of skills to help them prevent and respond to bushfires.

North West Bushfire Patrol was developed in partnership with the Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions.

Students understand a fire emergency is an unsafe fire that puts someone’s life or property in danger. They know to seek help from an adult when there is an unsafe fire and demonstrate how to call Triple Zero in an emergency.

Students understand how the weather can increase bushfire danger and create unsafe fire conditions, and that fire can be more dangerous during different seasons of the year. Students understand that the Fire Danger Rating helps to keep us safe, as it tells us the level of bushfire danger on a particular day.

The Emergency Helpers in the Community and Me! excursion is not available for Kindergarten and Pre-School Groups. This is a curriculum-linked excursion and contains information, safety messages and activities that are developmentally appropriate for Pre-Primary to Year 2 school children only.

The Emergency Helpers in the Community and Me! excursion is available for home schooled pre primary to year 2 students. Parents are welcome to attend but younger siblings are not able to participate in all activities. Bookings are essential.